Septem Peccata Mortalia
by Shirai Phoenix
Summary: Irae, Superbia, Gula, Invidia, Avaritia, Luxuria, Acedia. All Seven Deadly Sins, Vampire Knight style.


**:::Septem Peccata Mortalia:::**

* * *

**:::Irae:::**

* * *

_"'Tis said that wrath is the last thing in a man to grow old."_

~ Alcaeus

* * *

Kaname Kuran was coming back to Cross Academy.

After taking Yuuki with him and being away for over _one year_, the Bastard had decided to come back and regain control of the Night Class and its vampires.

All the students were ecstatic, to say the least, and the Headmaster wanted to make preparations for a huge all-school ball in honor of the two Purebloods—though he was mostly happy that his "darling daughter" was coming back to her "daddy". His idea had been shot down by a rather moody Yagari Touga, however—_"We can't just suddenly throw a ball just for the vampires; what would we tell the human students that are still left in the dark?"_—and Cross had, in the end, decided on a simple "family dinner".

And that's where the problem arose.

Zero Kiryuu did _not_ want to see either Kuran, not even catch a glimpse of them. He still felt heavily betrayed by the turn of events after (and even before) Rido's disappearance, and Ichiru's death was still greatly affecting him. He wasn't ready to face his enemies again—too much had happened, too much was _still_ happening, and he simply wasn't ready. Not when things had finally started to sort of calm down, not when he'd finally managed to get some peace in his life—though the ghosts of the past still tormented him daily, night after night, day by painful day—not when he'd_ finally_ been able to swallow blood tablets to quench his thirst—which had been getting worse and worse by the second, closer to the "End-Line".

The Headmaster knew all of that, he said he understood; but he still wanted Zero to participate, even going as far as abusing his authority to _order_ the teen to come to the dinner.

Needless to say, the Hunter's reaction head _not_ been a funny one, and the Headmaster's desk had received the damage, much to the latter's dismay. After that, Zero had stormed out of the office in his rage and hadn't talked to the blond man since.

And finally, after a painfully long week filled with pathetic attempts at reconciliation (from Kaien's side) and death threats (from Zero), the "Doomsday", as Kaito had kindly summarized it for the silverette one day, finally came.

All the vampires of the Night Class—and Sayori Wakaba—were gathered at the gates of the Academy, anxiously waiting for their King and Queen—Zero and Kaito had literally almost barfed upon hearing the Purebloods being called that—to arrive. The Hunters had to, at times, physically remove some of the students from the iron bars, namely the impatient Cs who had fallen victims of the "Kuran Charm" on the long run and couldn't wait to see their "Lord".

Minutes turned into hours and the sky darkened. The stars were starting to appear in the mix of orange, pink, and violet of the clouds, and the moon—a beautiful crescent—made its appearance known. It was a beautiful spring night, not too warm and not too cold, but there still was no trace of the two Kuran siblings and their followers.

Zero heard Kaito whisper in his ear, "Well, that was anti-climatic", at some point, and he couldn't help but agree with the brunet. At the same time, though, he was feeling releived.

Which was fairly short-lived, as Karma—that nasty bitch—would had it for him, for in the next five minutes (more or less), a black car, followed by a silver one, pulled up in front of the school. The students murmured excitedly among each other when the cars' doors opened, and out walked the vampires they'd all been waiting for in over a year.

None of them looked any different in appearance. Aidou was still blond, his cousin was still serious, Ruka was still gorgeous—Zero hated to admit it, but she truly _was_ beautiful—Senri and Rima still munched on their beloved _Pocky_ with absolutely no care in the world, Takuma's smile was still as joyous as ever, and Seiren was every bit as intimidating and deadly as everyone knew she was.

And yet, despite appearances, even Zero could feel something different about each one of them.

Aidou wasn't as haughty as he'd been, Akatsuki seemed happier, Ruka seemed definitely less bitchy—were they _holding hands?_—Shiki and his girlfriend also seemed much closer, Takuma seemed a little more serious, and Seiren's posture was more...relaxed, to say the least.

And then, of course, there was Yuuki...and the _Bastard_.

Zero didn't want to look at them, didn't even want to _smell_ them or feel their aura, but he couldn't help it; his curiosity was too strong, and his past feelings for the girl were screaming at him to drown into her kindness once more.

And, oh, how kind she looked. The silver-haired teen was overwhelmed to see the girl hadn't changed much; she was still petite, still beautiful, and her brown eyes were still soft and ever-knowing, understanding, like her smile, and it _hurt_ him to know that. Her hair was longer, yes, and wavier, but still the same chestnut color he'd grown accustomed to in his childhood. Her awkwardness and boyish attitude had made way to an elegance and femininity he'd always made fun she'd never posses, and Zero felt another pang in his chest when memories of them bickering about the topic flashed in his mind. She was dressed in a simple, peach-colored, long-sleeved dress, but the way she wore it made it look like a wedding gown in his eyes.

And then the Hunter felt something hit him in the ribs—an elbow—and he released the breath he never knew he'd been holding. His head whipped to his left and met Kaito's hazel eyes, soft and understanding, but silently ordering him to keep calm. Zero didn't know if he wanted to thank or cuss out his comrade, so he simply nodded and looked back at the people now entering the gates and being greeted by their fellows. Pointy fangs and greedy eyes glinted under the evening glow as the Night students welcomed their leaders.

Zero Kiryuu had never, _ever_, liked Kaname Kuran. Ever since the first time he'd met the brunet, back when he was a child, he'd harbored only hatred and pure disgust towards him. In his eyes, Kaname was nothing but another Shizuka, a creature of death and destruction disguised as a beautiful angel. The Pureblood was absolutely glorious in his deception, so smooth with words and actions that no one ever detected his lies. Zero absolutely _loathed_ that. He loathed the brunet's whole _being_ with a passion so intense it would have burned the vampire _alive_.

And _God_, how Zero wished he could have made that happen. He would give his life for a single chance of hurting Kaname, of blasting a bullet through that fucking skull of his, to rip his heart out of his chest, to _destroy_ and _mutilate_ the Level A until he was nothing more but dust and ashes. He would give his life to give back to the Bastard all the pain he'd inflicted. Zero would never forget all the lies, all the degrading words, all the pain, the disgrace, all the times he'd been used as the Pureblood's pawn, as if his life mattered nothing, as if the Hunter was worth less than shit.

Maybe that was true, maybe Zero really _did_ mean nothing to the vampire world, but he mattered to himself, and he mattered to Kaito and Yagari-sensei, and he mattered to Kaien. He mattered to his deceased brother, to his parents in Heaven, to the people he'd saved from vampire attacks during many of his missions. He _mattered_ to someone, and being shot down by a pompous asshole every single day of his life surely took a toll on his sanity.

Simply put, he was tired of Kaname's bullshit. He wanted the Bastard _dead_, and he would achieve that goal with his own han—

"_Zero_."

His body twitched, his lavender eyes blinked, and Zero turned once again towards the source of the voice calling his name in a firm, yet surprisingly gentle, manner. Kaito stood there by his side—he'd always stood by his side, every time he needed it—again fixing him with a hazel stare full of hidden meaning and support, his jaw set firm and lips pursed in a thin line as he observed the silverette's reaction.

Swallowing once, twice, and wetting his lips, Zero replied with a monotonous, "What?"

"Calm down," Kaito said in return, almost an order. "Your body is shaking and I can read 'Bloody Murder' all over your face. Your eyes will catch fire if you don't chill out." Poor attempt at humor, but it got the point across: _people will notice, stop it._

Zero wanted to punch him in the face, yell at him to leave him the fuck alone, to stop patronizing him and giving him orders, but he swallowed all those harsh words back. He knew Kaito was only trying to save him from attention, from what would obviously cause a scandal if he were found glaring daggers at the "Pureblood Prince". He would have had all the stupid vampires at his throat, and there was only so much he'd be able to take before going on a rampage and wasting all his ammo on the fuckers. "Sorry," he mumbled, and lowered his head. When his comrade's arm came around his neck and lightly squeezed his shoulder in some sort of comforting gesture, the silverette clenched his fists and teeth, willing his anger away—if only momentarily.

_Soon_, he promised himself. _Soon, I'll get what I want_.

And with that, he hastily shrugged the arm off his back, turned around, and made his way back to his dorm without anyone noticing. Kaito's eyes were piercing his back, he knew, but he didn't look back.

_Soon_.

* * *

**Stay tuned for the next sin.**


End file.
